SkyEye flew over the sprawling complex where rows and lines of vehicles were fed after vaccinations under white tents.
The opening of the vaccination clinic was not without any heel. A number of factors, including missed appointments during the day, forced some people to wait up to 45 minutes. FEMA told ABC13 it is working to resolve the long wait.
The clinic had a soft launch on Tuesday and will offer another venue in addition to the provinces, city, hospital and pharmacies throughout the region.
Organizers say the federal website is expected to vaccinate 126,000 people. It is estimated that 300,000 people who have applied for the vaccine are still waiting for their first dose of vaccine. The mega-website will significantly increase the chances of getting the chance soon.
On Monday afternoon, Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo, Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner, FEMA Regional Director Tony Robinson, and other local authorities gave details about the federally supported, state-run COVID-19 mass vaccination clinic.
WATCH: Check out the NRG Park COVID-19 vaccine mega-site before soft opening
Since its announcement a few weeks ago, workers have been building the temporary mass vaccination facility. It will be a drive-through facility in the Yellow Lot at NRG Park.
“People deserve good news and hope,” Hidalgo said. “This site is the biggest effort so far to get our community vaccinated.”
According to Hidalgo, they are going to vaccinate those who live in the postal codes hard hit by the virus.
“We all at the state, federal and local levels, we agree that this site should focus on the people who have been left behind so far, who have been hit the hardest by COVID-19,” Hidalgo said. “We did this by finding zip codes with the highest prevalence of the virus, and the highest social vulnerability and the social vulnerability index.”
The zip codes are as follows: 77022, 77029, 77032, 77078, 77087, 77093, 77502, 77504, 77506, 77587, 77011, 77012, 77015, 77016, 77020, 77026, 77028, 77033, 77037, 77038, 77039, 77048, 77086, 77091, 77503, 77060, 77080, 77099, 77013, 77014, 77036, 77050, 77051, 77076, 77090.
Hidalgo added that individuals 65 and older on the waiting list who come from the city’s and province’s top 10 zip codes are given the highest priority for the vaccines on site.
The next priority group is those aged 65 and over.
“Then we will prioritize individuals next to the rest of the 25 zip codes that have been hit the hardest before moving out of the broader waiting list,” Hidalgo said. This group is aged 60 to 64 years with underlying medical conditions existing in high risk postal codes.
The fourth priority group is the ages of 60 to 64 years with underlying medical conditions.
FEMA uses the waiting list of Harris County and the city of Houston. Individuals are contacted for appointments.
Visit their website to go to the waiting list for the city of Houston houstonemergency.org/covid-19-vaccines or call 832-393-4301.
Harris County’s waiting list can be reached at vacstrac.hctx.net.
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